Cake protector and candle holder

ABSTRACT

A shield adapted to be placed over a cake, or other food items to make it inaccessible to people and to insects. The shield is also adapted to hold candles which are customarily used in celebrating birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and other memorable occasions.

' United States Patent 1 1 1111 3,819,455 MacKendrick June 25, 1974 CAKE PROTECTOR AND CANDLE 1,863,793 6/1932 Hermani 312/284 HOLDER 2,203,540 6/1920 Montgomery .1 2,758,458 8/1968 Carlson 1 1 Inventor: Edith MacKendrlck, PO Box 2,960,770 11/1960 Valenta 1. 431/295 7345, Upper Darby, Pa. 19101 3,409,062 11/1968 Portclla Vilanovu 206/4534 Filed y 1 1972 3,736,214 /1973 McBirnie 161/18 PP NOJ 249,396 Primary Examiner-George F. Lesmes Assistant ExaminerEllis P. Robinson 52 us. (:1 161/7, 161/18, 312/284, Attorney Agent, or Firm Spivak,

426/128, 431/295 [51] Int. Cl B65b /16 57 ABSTRACT [58] Fleld of Search 312/284, 284 X; 431/295;

220/29; 206/4534 32 4533; /52 R; A shleld adapted to be placed over a cake, or other 99/172 18 161/7, 426/128 food items to make it inaccessible to people and to insects. The shield is also adapted to hold candles which 56] References Cited are customarily used in celebrating birthdays, wedding UNITED STATES PATENTS anniversaries, and other memorable occasions.

1,125,855 1/1915 Mapes 431/295 2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENIEUJIIIZSIBH 819,455 SHEU 2 or 2 FIG. 5.

1 CAKE PROTECTOR AND CANDLE HOLDER BACKGROUND Cakes used in the celebration of birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and the like, are decorated with candles the number of which is frequently related to the number of years being celebrated. Such candles are planted in the sense that they are pushed into the top of the cake. When ignited, the candles tend to drip, and in the process of planting the candles and pulling them out, the decorated cake gets disfigured and the fingers get smeared. Observation has shown that the preferred method of cleaning the sticky fingers is to lick them preparatory to the resumption of the operation, which often results in more finger-smearing and more licking.

An even more offensive and unsanitary practice prevails when a child of tender years is called upon to blow out the candles on his cake with one breath. In order to please, the child takes a deep breath and lets go with a cloud of atomized saliva. This may please a doting mother but nauseates the guests who prefer their cake straight, that is, unmixed with saliva.

The object of this invention is to protect the cake without detracting from its appearance and without denying the young celebrant the pleasure of blowing out the candles.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a Cake Protector and Candle Holder, embodying the invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view looking in the direction of line 2 2 on FIG. 1 showing the application of the invention to a relatively small cake.

FIG. 3 is similar to FIG. 1 but shows the application of the invention to a relatively large cake.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view looking in the direction of line 4 4 on FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view looking in the direction of line 5 5 on FIG. 4.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a typical birthday cake which is adorned with one or more candles.

In order to protect the cake against contamination, I provide a shield 12 which is preferably dome-shaped but which can be of any other shape, as long as it effectively renders the cake inaccessible to fingers and to airborne contaminants. The shield is preferably made of transparent or translucent material or of any other opaque material.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, the shield 12 is provided with a peripheral flange 14 which, when the shield is in use, rests on the surface of the cake and with a handle 18 which is adapted to receive a candle 18A. The shield is provided with through, or with blind, holes 20, for receiving candles 188. In addition to, or as a replacement for the holes, I may provide a shield with slots or channels for receiving the lower ends of the candles. The slots have the advantage of flexibility in that the candles can be moved about, whereas the holes provide stationary supports.

As can be seen from FIG. 2, the cake is protected against contact with the fingers and against air-bome contaminants.

For use on larger cakes, I provide an adapter 24 which consists of a vertical ring 26, a lower horizontal flange 28 which is preferably flush with the bottom of the cake, and an upper horizontal flange 30 which is adapted to rest on the flange 14 of shield 12 which, except as set forth below, is identical with shield 12 of FIG. 2. In using the embodiment of FIG. 3, the shield is first lowered on to the cake, as in FIG. 3, and the adapter is lowered into the position of FIG. 4, in which the upper flange 30 of the adapter comes to rest on the flange 14 of the shield 12. By this arrangement, when shield 12 is lifted, the adapter is raised with it. In order to interlock the shield 12 with the flange 30 of the adapter, flange 30 is provided with a rib 34 which is adapted to engage a recess 36 in flange 14 of the shield. This prevents relative rotation of the adapter and the shield.

In addition to protecting the side of the cake, the adapter of FIG. 3 is adjustable so as to be usable on cakes larger than that shown in FIG. 4. This can be done by increasing the effective diameter of ring 26 and enlarging the width of flange 30. When this is done, there will be a space between the ring 26 and the vertical wall 31 of the cake.

What I claim is:

1. In a combined cake protector and candle holder to protect a cake having a height and first diameter, the combination of A. a shield of dome-shaped configuration in contact with the cake, 1. said shield having a second diameter,

a. said second diameter being smaller than the first diameter,

2. said shield terminating downwardly in a bottom,

peripheral flange,

a. said flange resting directly upon the cake whereby the shield is supported by the cake, and

3. said shield being provided with a plurality of candle receiving holes to support candles therein, and

B. a cylindrical adapter ring surrounding the cake,

1. said ring having a body of third diameter which is greater than the first diameter,

2. said body having a ring height which is greater than the height of the cake,

3. said ring body terminating downwardly in a lower horizontal flange,

a. said lower flange extending outwardly from the body in a horizontal plane,

4. said ring body terminating upwardly in an upper horizontal flange,

a. said upper flange extending inwardly from the body in a horizontal plane,

b. said upper flange extending inwardly a sufficient distance to overlie'a portion of the cake and,

c. said upper flange resting upon the bottom flange of the shield.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein the upper horizontal flange of the adapter ring is provided with a rib and the bottom peripheral flange of the shield is provided with a cooperating recess, the said rib engaging within the recess to prevent relative rotation of the adapter and the shield. 

1. In a combined cake protector and candle holder to protect a cake having a height and first diameter, the combination of A. a shield of dome-shaped configuration in contact with the cake,
 1. said shield having a second diameter, a. said second diameter being smaller than the first diameter,
 2. said shield terminating downwardly in a bottom, peripheral flange, a. said flange resting directly upon the cake whereby the shield is supported by the cake, and
 3. said shield being provided with a plurality of candle receiving holes to support candles therein, and B. a cylindrical adapter ring surrounding the cake,
 1. said ring having a body of third diameter which is greater than the first diameter,
 2. said body having a ring height which is greater than the height of the cake,
 3. said ring body terminating downwardly in a lower horizontal flange, a. said lower flange extending outwardly from the body in a horizontal plane,
 4. said ring body terminating upwardly in an upper horizontal flange, a. said upper flange extending inwardly from the body in a horizontal plane, b. said upper flange extending inwardly a sufficient distance to overlie a portion of the cake and, c. said upper flange resting upon the bottom flange of the shield.
 2. said shield terminating downwardly in a bottom, peripheral flange, a. said flange resting directly upon the cake whereby the shield is supported by the cake, and
 2. The invention of claim 1 wherein the upper horizontal flange of the adapter ring is provided with a rib and the bottom peripheral flange of the shield is provided with a cooperating recess, the said rib engaging within the recess to prevent relative rotation of the adapter and the shield.
 2. said body having a ring height which is greater than the height of the cake,
 3. said shield being provided with a plurality of candle receiving holes to support candles therein, and B. a cylindrical adapter ring surrounding the cake,
 3. said ring body terminating downwardly in a lower horizontal flange, a. said lower flange extending outwardly from the body in a horizontal plane,
 4. said ring body terminating upwardly in an upper horizontal flange, a. said upper flange extending inwardly from the body in a horizontal plane, b. said upper flange extending inwardly a sufficient distance to overlie a portion of the cake and, c. said upper flange resting upon the bottom flange of the shield. 